Midway lessons for fighters, torpedo bombers, and screens

American reviews identified fighter speed, maneuverability, and climb, the Douglas torpedo bomber, and weak torpedo design as material shortcomings. The US answer favored long-range fighter escort and weapons released at higher speeds, while British doctrine leaned more heavily on night attack and slower, controlled torpedo entry. Coral Sea and Midway supplied the evidence American naval bureaus and Congress needed to fund capabilities already recognized as desirable. Reorganized cruiser and destroyer screens limited the number of Japanese aircraft that reached Yorktown, though a treaty-design carrier remained critically vulnerable once torpedoes penetrated the screen.